Welcome to the 2021 A to Z Challenge! My theme this year is DC Comics. And that’s mostly because of my undying affection for the comic book characters and stories that I grew up reading in the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s. So stay tuned all month to (maybe) learn a little something about 26 corners of the DC Multiverse.

For T day, I thought I’d get back to another Superman villain. I know that there have been a number of different versions of Toyman, but I’m just gonna focus on the version I’m familiar with. Because I know absolutely nothing about the villain who would have appeared in the Golden or Silver Ages. Maybe they’re similar… maybe they’re not. Wikipedia probably knows.

Toyman’s real name is Winslow Schott, a toymaker who blames Lex Luthor and LexCorp for his being fired from his toy company. He’s not one of your more threatening villains, using the toys he creates to commit various crimes. He occasionally abducts children, but never means them any harm, claiming to love children.

However, shortly after Superman’s return from the dead, Toyman’s image took a turn for the worse. In order to become “edgier” so that he would be included in a line of Superman action figures, Toyman shaved his head and changed his outfit to a black trench coat. This eventually led to Toyman seemingly having a psychotic break.

Where once Toyman would abduct children but not harm them, this version of Toyman kidnapped and murdered Adam, the son of Superman supporting character Cat Grant. It was later revealed that this “edgy” version of Toyman was really a robot created by Winslow Schott to take over for him in case he was ever locked up for his crimes. But the robot had a glitch, which caused him to kill without remorse.

I don’t know what’s become of Toyman in the more recent continuity. He’s not exactly one of Superman’s more popular or powerful villains, so it wouldn’t surprise me if he hasn’t been utilized at all.

Thinking on it, I’m pretty sure Toyman has only appeared on television with Superman the Animated Series and the currently running Supergirl. A version may have shown up for an episode of Lois & Clark, but I’m not 100% on that.

Are you familiar with Toyman? What did I leave out? Let me know your thoughts down below!